408 
AMERICAS AGRICULTURIST. 
[October, 
liay up such a bridge. But it will be easily 
seen that this manner of building the barn 
saves much hand-labor. The driver has only 
to push the load from the wagon down into ! 
the bay, and when there it is easy to stow 
it away.” The engraving shows the bridge. 
Experiments in Keeping Poultry. 
BY P. H. JACOBS, ATLANTIC CO., N. J. 
-*<*>■- 
The keeping of poultry in large numbers 
seems to be a very difficult matter, for poul- 
we must at the outset give up the idea of al¬ 
lowing large numbers to run together at will, 
as the past has demonstrated such method to 
[ be erroneous. The general absence of large 
flocks indicates that farmers consider poultry 
as of minor importance, while in fact there 
is nothing produced on the farm that pays a 
greater percentage upon the capital invested 
than fowls. To succeed, instead of ranging 
in crowds, over large areas, fowls should be 
divided into families of about 12, never ex¬ 
ceeding 15. Each flock must possess a poul- 
Fig. 6. —ARRANGEMENT OF POUDTRY 
try farms are rare, and farmers appear to be 
rather averse to such enterprises. That poul¬ 
try in large numbers are as profitable as 
when but few are kept, has been demonstra¬ 
ted to my own satisfaction by carefully con¬ 
ducted experiments, extending over a period 
of over 20 years, and after many losses and 
disappointments, I have come to the con¬ 
clusion . that, no matter how favorable the 
conditions, poultry cannot profitably be kept 
in large numbers, except by division into 
families, not exceeding one dozen in each. 
This proposition I am sure can be verified by 
thousands of our farmers, who are aware 
that a larger proportion of eggs are obtained 
from small flocks than from large. This ar¬ 
ticle is intended for farmers rather than for 
fowl fanciers, and while it will endeavor to 
show how poultry may be made profitable 
when bred and sold for ordinary purposes, I 
admit the value of all that has been done by 
Fig. 1.—POULTRY HOUSE—EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR. 
those who have been energetic in improving 
and perfecting the different breeds of fowls. 
The Proper Size of Flocks. 
With the exception of the additional labor 
and quarters necessary, it is as easy to profit¬ 
ably keep a thousand hens as a dozen, but 
HOUSES WITH TWO YARDS TO EACH. 
trv-house and two yards. The object of two 
yards is to allow of high cultivation, clean¬ 
liness, and to secure freedom from disease. 
Poultry-Houses and Yards 
should be as little expensive as possible, and 
farmers need not be alarmed at what seems 
a great cost, as it is really insignificant in 
comparison with the advantages. There are 
many ways of erecting a cheap poultry- 
house, and each individual may have his own 
methods, which may be superior to that here 
given. For a cheap affair, I purchase cheap 
but serviceable material. For a dozen hens, 
a house 10 by 10 feet square is quite large, 
and if kept clean, 6 by 6 feet is not too small. 
My houses are small, being 8 feet high in 
front, and 5 at the back. Each house is 
made of weather¬ 
boarding all around, 
the roof being made 
in same manner, as 
the high pitch car¬ 
ries off all rains. 
Each has a door, 
consisting of a solid 
20-inch board, and a 
glazed sash in front 
for light. The houses Fi - *-%*&** PAK ~ 
face the south. The 
top board in front is hinged, in order to 
open or close for ventilation. The window- 
sash is taken out in summer, and a wire 
Fig. 4.—SECTION OF 
FENCE. 
screen substituted. The house has two 
openings into the yards, one of which is 
closed when the yard to which it belongs 
is not used by the fowls. The cost of 
such a building is about $5 for material in 
this section, where lumber sells for $20 per 
thousand. Each house has a board floor, 
and the nests are around the house ; for a 
dozen fowls, a row at the back and on one 
side is sufficient, as seen in fig. 1, where the 
interior of the house is exposed by removing 
one of the sides. The nests are covered by a 
wide board, over which is a perch for roost¬ 
ing, as in figure 2. This economizes space. 
The wide board re¬ 
ceives the droppings, 
and facilitates their 
removal, while the 
fowls can not injure 
themselves in getting 
on or off the roost. 
The floor is likewise 
clean, and crowding 
together prevented. 
The nests may be 
compared to a long 
box with the front 
taken off, the parti¬ 
tions being nailed to 
the front piece, and 
being separate and de¬ 
tachable, can be easily cleaned out. Figure 3 
shows the nest when closed up and B 
represents the nest partitions, which-are 
made to fit into A. The nests should be 
roomy ; one foot square answers. With this 
arrangement of nests and roost, one can en¬ 
ter the house at any time without fear of 
filth, and every morning it is cleaned out, 
using a broom. A liberal quantity of dry 
earth, mixed with a little ground plaster, 
should always be scattered over the floor, 
and on the board under the roost after each 
sweeping. Only a few minutes are required 
for the work, and there is no disagreeable 
odor. Twice a month a good whitewashing, 
both inside and outside, is given, keeping 
away disease and vermin. A weather- 
boarded house is better than one stripped or 
battened perpendicularly, as the rain cannot 
enter, and it is somewhat open in summer 
from warping and lack of close fitting of the 
boards. This admits of more or less ventila¬ 
tion. In winter, 
paper the interi¬ 
or with two or 
three thickness¬ 
es of old news¬ 
papers, and the 
house will be 
warm and com¬ 
fortable. On the 
approach of very 
warm weather, 
the paper is torn 
off. A coating 
of whitewash, to 
which a little glue and flour-paste is add¬ 
ed, makes the paper lining hard and stiff. 
The Yards. 
The fences are made of lath, 100 of which 
will make 30 feet of fence, when placed 
about the width of a lath apart. Three 
strips are used, the latl.s being nailed to the 
bottom and center strip; and in order to 
complete the hight to 6 feet, another row is 
nailed to the center and top strips, as shown 
by a section of the fence in fig. 4. This re¬ 
quires, however, more laths. A cheap fence. 
